Academy Workshop - The Pencil Test

A pencil costs very little. But behind it sits a surprisingly complex network of forests, mines, mills, factories, machinery, utilities and specialist processes.

Inspired by Leonard Read’s I, Pencil, this interactive webinar uses that simple object to explore a much bigger question: how exposed is your organisation if its declared values are wrong?

Through practical examples and live audience polls, we will examine five conversations every risk and insurance manager should be prepared for: insurer scrutiny of declared values; the financial consequences of underinsurance; hard-to-insure and difficult-to-replace assets; governance and board accountability; and the evidence needed to build insurer confidence at renewal.

We will also consider how changing risk conditions, including wildfire exposure and volatile reinstatement costs, can alter the assumptions behind declared values.

The session will finish with a practical framework for identifying where valuation evidence may be weakest and deciding what to challenge before the next renewal or loss.

This reflects the deck's intended progression from insurer scrutiny through underinsurance, specialist assets, governance and renewal confidence

By the end of the session, you will be able to:

• Identify common warning signs that declared values may be outdated, incomplete or unsupported.
• Explain how inaccurate declared values can affect underinsurance exposure and claims outcomes.
• Recognise asset and reinstatement characteristics that can make replacement costs difficult to determine and insure.
• State the key governance questions risk managers should ask about ownership, review frequency and material changes to declared values.
• Describe the valuation evidence that can support insurer confidence and more effective renewal negotiations.

Speaker:

Matthew Wright, Managing Director UK, Netherlands & Germany, Kroll